Burning Cleaner Fuel, Making Baltimore Greener

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BALTIMORE (WJZ)–The city unveils its latest effort to make Baltimore greener.

Gigi Barnett reports this time it’s with biofuels to heat city-owned buildings this winter.

The boiler room at the Police Safety Training Facility in Northwest Baltimore is burning cleaner fuel. It’s part of the city’s new plan to switch to renewable biofuels in city boilers.

In the past, the city used heating oil, which costs more and causes high levels of air pollution.

While the new biofuel is still in the testing phase, the city hopes workers won’t notice the difference.

“We’re monitoring, we’re dealing with our city workers in those buildings,” said Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, “We’re in constant contact and we’re making sure we monitor the level of heat that we get, comparing it to what we’re getting with it.”

Over the last few years, the city has been on a mission to reduce pollution throughout Baltimore.

By 2020, the city’s goal is to drop energy use by 30 percent, and that could save the city some cash.

“If we can find innovative ways to reduce our energy cost, we save citizens money,” Rawlings-Blake said. “And in these difficult times, we’re always looking for ways to do more with less, and this is giving us another opportunity. So I’m hopeful.”

In addition to the training facility, the city also plans to test the new biofuel at two schools, a wastewater treatment plant and a health center.